"Security remains an expensive business with Federal Parliament paying more than $2 million for US-made bollards to restrict access to the Parliament House forecourt.
"That's just part of the work, with installation of concrete barriers around the building now well under way.
"For those who regard the white plastic barriers in front of the parliament building an eyesore, there's some good news.
"Senate President Paul Calvert told a Senate estimates committee they would be gone by the end of May.
"He said it could have been sooner, but he decided a $150,000 charge for air freighting of replacement bollards from the US could not be justified. They will now travel by ship.
"Senator Calvert said they had tried to buy Australian, but the locally made bollards weren't up to specifications while those made in the US exceeded them.
"For $2.264 million, parliament gets 38 that are manually retractable and 170 that aren't."
"That's just part of the work, with installation of concrete barriers around the building now well under way.
"For those who regard the white plastic barriers in front of the parliament building an eyesore, there's some good news.
"Senate President Paul Calvert told a Senate estimates committee they would be gone by the end of May.
"He said it could have been sooner, but he decided a $150,000 charge for air freighting of replacement bollards from the US could not be justified. They will now travel by ship.
"Senator Calvert said they had tried to buy Australian, but the locally made bollards weren't up to specifications while those made in the US exceeded them.
"For $2.264 million, parliament gets 38 that are manually retractable and 170 that aren't."
- today's Canberra Times
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It's where we train on Mondays in winter. So we will still have to put up with the picket fence - and with works in progress - when we resume there in April.
The article also says the grass around the sides is not being watered and will be replaced once the drought breaks.
So we can wear out a track and pound along the grass to our heart's content.
The article also says the grass around the sides is not being watered and will be replaced once the drought breaks.
So we can wear out a track and pound along the grass to our heart's content.
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